A time to GETAWAY and see the SKY

Wow. That sounded adventuresome! I have been wondering. When we were in Belize in 2016, we went on an NCL cave tubing excursion. We went in tubes with a guide in an underground cave system known about since the days of the Mayans. We really enjoyed it. It was not claustrophobic at all. In some places the caves were open at the top and you could see out. I have not heard anyone mention doing that for awhile. I wonder if they are still offering this as an excursion?

Wow. That sounded adventuresome! I have been wondering. When we were in Belize in 2016, we went on an NCL cave tubing excursion. We went in tubes with a guide in an underground cave system known about since the days of the Mayans. We really enjoyed it. It was not claustrophobic at all. In some places the caves were open at the top and you could see out. I have not heard anyone mention doing that for awhile. I wonder if they are still offering this as an excursion?

When we looked, I do not remember seeing that tour. While doing the review I checked to make sure I had the right name and it showed all the tours were not available. Not sure if there is something going on.

I was going to mention while we were waiting for the other group, Dre talked about the dispute between the village and NCL. He said originally they were going to build a dock so cruise ships could dock at Placencia, but they got into a disagreement about money. NCL then decided to build their private island. This disagreement is why nobody can come to the island to pick up a tour except ship sponsored tours. Our tour went almost right by the island when we took our boat ride. Dre is also the one that told me that NCL is raising the price to $30 pp as they are trying to pursuade people from not leaving the island. Not sure if all true, but it's what he said.

We woke up about 7 am and could again see land. I could see MSC Armonia was already docked. We went to Margaritaville for breakfast and while at breakfast I could see RCI was pulling in. It was Liberty of Seas. It pulled up and docked next to MSC and what a difference in size.

We had booked an excursion that went to the Chacchoben ruins. I again used costco and the tour name was Mayan Experience. The cost was $83 pp with the discount and was scheduled to be 5 1/2 hours. This tour leaves from a building a few blocks from the port. I was provided written instructions as well as a map. It was about a short 10 minute walk. There were a lot of people going to this place so there were a lot of people on streets. Never felt unsafe.

This tour was one that went to the ruins and then to a Mayan village for an authentic lunch. I had originally thought of booking the ruins deluxe tour through NCL as I had read it was small group of about 12, but the price was $129 pp. I thought I read the Mayan Experience was small group, but I guess I got confused.

Native Office:

We arrived at the Native Choice Office and there 200 hundred of people all around. There were large buses parked on the street. We checked in inside the building a waited less than a minute. I gave them the tour confirmation and they gave us a colored wrist band and offered us cold bottle water. We went outside and then were directed to one of the large buses. There were about 40 people on the bus and we sat inside the nice a/c for about 5 mintues before we were off. Our guide was Erick and Patricio (patrick). They were awesome and made this tour. They were very knowledgeable and new when to speak and when to move on.

Erick

Patricio

I'm back to work and 15 hour days. I'll post more on Sunday.

Wow. That sounded adventuresome! I have been wondering. When we were in Belize in 2016, we went on an NCL cave tubing excursion. We went in tubes with a guide in an underground cave system known about since the days of the Mayans. We really enjoyed it. It was not claustrophobic at all. In some places the caves were open at the top and you could see out. I have not heard anyone mention doing that for awhile. I wonder if they are still offering this as an excursion?

It was Belize City.

NCL now goes to Harvest Caye, which is nowhere near Belize City.

Google both in Google Maps and you'll see they are so far apart.

It was Belize City.

 

NCL now goes to Harvest Caye, which is nowhere near Belize City.

 

Google both in Google Maps and you'll see they are so far apart.

Thanks I have been wondering about it.

This is the map they send to you along with written instructions about how to find the tour location. Pretty easy to find.

Here are some photos of some landmarks seen in the map. This photo shows the exit in the background (yellow arch)

A view of the exit.

The walkway in the middle of the street

Hang a left at the water monument and two blocks up on your left is the Native Choice office.

The drive to the ruins was about 45 minutes. Erick gave us some history of the area and about himself with a little humor. Erick said Costa Maya is not a city, but just a name for the port. The port was rebuilt/remodled within the last few years. The drive there is very interesting as you are going through a flood plain. you could see a lot of standing water and everything was green.

Erick explained that they have these speed bumps along the road to slow you down. At the speed bumps is a fruit stand where they will try to sell you things.

When we arrived and we got of the bus we were offered a Mexican candy. It had chili powder and was a mixute of hot and sweet.

When we arrived, at first glance it looked very busy. There were buses, vans, and taxis all over and still arriving. While there were a lot of people, each groups seemed to find their little area and we were always able to wait less than a minute to get a photo with nobody in the background.

After a potty break and a look around the merchandise booths we were off with flag in hand.

This was our first stop. I thought this was it and was really disappointed as they had it roped off and you couldn't climb on it. You can sort of see how many people were there.

Patrick really talked about the history as his is Mayan. After a 5 minute stop and photos we were off to the shade were we continued our talk. After that we found more ruins and that was what I was hoping for.

While you couldn't climb all the way to the top, there were some great photos opportunities.

The area the last few photos were taken from is up a hill. There are two sides to walk up to get there. Both are stairs and one side is a lot steeper than the other. We were going to walk down the side we had not gone up, but when I saw how steep it was I changed my mind as one slip and your down the whole stair case. The photo does not do the steepness justice.

Patrick showed us how to count in the Mayan system.

We were at the ruins for about 1.5 hours. It was starting to get a little hot as the breeze had stop. It started to rain for about 30 seconds, just enough to put the sun behind the clouds. After that, we boarded the bus and made our way the Mayan village which was about 20 minutes for lunch.

I have to get ready for work. 10 hours today and 15 hours tomorrow so I'll post more on Tuesday.

Thanks for doing this. Still following along. Very interesting!

So your friends had Haven access and you were able to use some of the Haven benefits also even though you were not booked in the Haven? I believe you mentioned the priority escort off the ship and the use of the concierge?

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So your friends had Haven access and you were able to use some of the Haven benefits also even though you were not booked in the Haven? I believe you mentioned the priority escort off the ship and the use of the concierge?

 

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Yes. We did not go crazy by hanging out at the pool or the bar, but used the above benefits with no issue.

The trip to the village was quick and when we arrived it looked no different than a neighborhood.

Once we arrived we were given a tour of the grounds. Erick showed us the plants on the grounds and explained how they are all used in someway.

The kitchen

Erick talked about each item we were going to have for lunch.

chicken

Rice

Vegetables

Empanadas

Under the banana leaf are tamales. In Mayan culture they use banana leaves instead of corn husks.

black beans

My plate of food.

Dessert consisted of a cocunut pudding with cinnamon and it was very good. To drink we had hibiscus tea.

After lunch we got to make our own corn tortillas by hand. It was funny to see the different sizes and shapes we made. The lady showing us what to do made hers perfect and in about 10 seconds.

They were then cooked on "the stove" which was an open fire.

The meal was very good and there was plenty of food for seconds.

Some of our hosts. I think there was a total of 5 ladies who prepared the meal.

It was a very nice relaxing meal and we were not rushed. After lunch we had 10 minutes to gather ourself and walk around the grounds. We were then on the bus and on our way back to the port. The drive back was pretty short and Erick and Patrick talked a little bit about the trip and asked to post comments about the tour online.

Fire Station

We were dropped off about 1 block from the port so it was short walk back.

This tour was everything I expected and more. When I am on vacation, I have the motto that I need to do things I normally would not do and eat things I normally do not (with some exceptions). The food was good and I liked everything. I would recommend this tour to anybody.

We shopped a little in the port and made our way back to the ship. It was time to go to Vibe.

Random shots around port.

Once back on the ship we went and did the ropes course which was fun. The plank is pretty high up and I can't imagine walking it why the ship is moving. We went to the spa and then Vibe for our usual adult beverages and to watch sail away. We had reservations at Cirque tonight at 8:45 pm. We met in the Haven at 8:30pm and were escorted down and into the theater. We were the first 4 people there and they seated us at a table next to the stage. The theater opened to everybody else and we sat a table with a total of 10 people. The theater was not completely full, I would say 80%.

For dinner we had filet mignon followed by a three items for dessert and it was good. It seemed like the waiters were rushed trying to get all the food our and cleaned before the show started. The show was very good and about 45 minutes long. I think we were done about 10:30pm. I would say the show was good and would recommend it. Sorry I have no pictures of anything related to it.

That sounded like a really good tour. The lunch looked great. I am ready to jump in that beautiful pool!

That sounded like a really good tour. The lunch looked great. I am ready to jump in that beautiful pool!

The pool was really crowded when we returned to the port, plus the music was so loud. I have a pool at my house so going on vacation to these ports to just go into the pool with 1000 other people is not my idea of a relaxing vacation. I would much rather get back to the ship early and enjoy the pool pretty much to myself. Plus the drinks are cheaper.

Day 6- Cozumel

We woke up about 7am and saw we were pretty close to the port. We were supposed to be in port at 8:00am and our tour was 8:30am so we needed to be off the ship early. So the usual happened, get ready and off to Margaritaville. MSC Armonia was already in port.

First View

Pulling in. View from Margaritaville

Oasis of the Seas and Liberty of the Seas were already in port.

We docked at Punta Longosta.

We finished breakfast and then went up to Haven and were escorted off. We had booked an ATV Adventure to the Jade Caverns at 8:30am. The cost was about $80 pp with my coupon and was schedule to be 3 hours. Our instructions we receieved about our meeting place were as follows:

Passengers arriving at the Punta Langosta Pier:

Please take a short taxi ride from the exit of the pier to the Royal-Village Shopping Center, a 5-7 minute taxi ride (at your own expense). Your tour will depart from the Hard Rock Cafe Cozumel, located at the shopping center, Av. Rafael Melgar. A representative from Wild Tours will be waiting for you in uniform by the Wild Tours meeting point at the entrance of the restaurant. We ask all guests to please plan to be at the designated departure location at least 10 minutes before departure time.

When you exit the port you are in an outdoor mall. I knew getting a taxi was not going to be hard and while walking in the mall area I saw a guy who had a sign or shirt that said Taxi authority. I explained where I needed to go and he said to make a right. As we were walking towards this place anther guy was standing there and asked where we needed to go and I told him. He directed us towards the street where I saw a couple of people standing around taxis. We walked towards these taxis and another person asked where we needed to go. I told him and he looked confused and said where again. I kept walking and he was offering me a tour. I told him if he did not know where I needed to go than that was a clue to me. Another guy asked us where we were going and he directed us to his van where there 2 other people already inside. A minute later we were on our way and it took about 10 minutes due to some traffic. The cost was $8 total which is what I read it would cost and asked before we got in to confirm. We found our tour standing right in front of Hard Rock Cafe. Hard Rock is directly across the street from the Internation Pier where RCI had docked.

We waited for about 5 minutes and with 3 others we boarded another taxi and we where off. The drive was about 30 minutes.

Mexico GPS- A paper map covering the hole.

We arrived at the Cedral Community, home to the Cedral Reserve.

view looking back where we pulled in.

Sign at entrance

View of grounds from entrance. Where the guy is standing on the right, they did tequila tasting after our tour. On the left side, dark area is a photo booth because they take photos of you while your are driving.

We filled out a waiver and met our guide. We were given helmets and scarves. We had to watch a safety video for 5 minutes and then we walked to our vehicles. You can choose between dune buggy style or ATV.

There were several groups there, but we were only the 4 of us. We were first out and the drive was about 30 minutes to the caverns. While driving to the caverns, the road is mostly limestone rock with several puddles of dirt. You get dirty and it was fun. When we stopped at the caverns we were given a bottle of water and we walked down to see them. While walking down, there was a large turtle sitting on the dock that moved into the water. The caverns were covered in bats and the water was green. I read prior reviews about parasite levels being sometimes high in the water so decided not to jump in. Our guide said the water level is controlled by the tide. He said the water is green due to the limestone floor and that the water is believed to have healing aspects. He said if you get in the water has an egg like smell that usually stays with you for a couple days. Another group arrived and I heard a splash. Two of the people got in and I heard them say that is was a little cold and definetly had an odor. These two subjects utilized the showers at the bathrooms before returning to to the ship.

The daring souls.

We were at the caverns for about 30 minutes which was just the right amount of time. When we were getting ready to leave, a group of about 20 people showed up. Glad we were the first ones there.

A map of the Cedral Reserve

On the way back, we went a little different route and our guide made sure we got muddy. We were taken into a small cave and through holes with a foot of water.

I'll post those photos later and continue. Got to run some errands.

Thanks for posting the dailies! I’ve been printing them off for my wife and she has been taking the highlighter to them.